“Nothing like this ever happens in this neighborhood”
2018 was the year where America battled about how to deal with the massive problem of gun violence in this country. Not only gun violence, but gun rights, gun ownership, and gun laws. For so long people who love guns have confessed that guns don’t kill people, people kill people. Although this is true, guns are getting in the hands of people – who are killing people; and this is the leading cause of death for young men 15 to 19 years old. In Lawrenceville, GA a community has been disrupted after a teen was shot, and another teen committed suicide.
Lawrenceville is the upscale community in Atlanta, Georgia where this tragedy happened. Four boys were hanging out when one of the four young men, 15-year-old Devin Hodges, pulled out a handgun to show his 17 year-old friend Chad Carless. As they were playing with the gun, Hodges accidentally (according to the police) fired the weapon, shooting Carless.
Two of the other young men ran away, but Gwinnett County Police believe Hodges, who fired the fatal shot, stayed and called 9-1-1. As officers were responding to the emergency call, they stated they heard a “single gunshot while attempting to locate the involved parties from the initial 911 call.” The boys had been playing in a nearby shed, and responding officers found one teen dead inside, and another teen with a self-inflicted gun shot wound near the shed.
A witness told WSB ABC News, “nothing like this ever happens in this neighborhood”, however, we know in this country stuff like this happens too often. In 2019, we all – as a community, have to push to end this cycle of gun violence. Statistics estimate 4.6 million children live in homes with unlocked and loaded weapons. You want to be an asset to your community? Then start at home, the most important thing we can all do is start within the walls of where we live and lock up our guns.
This year and for the next 2 political seasons, gun laws will be a hot topic of discussion – stay informed.
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